The Fire Crystal

by Lawrence, James

  On some of the rocks they noticed that a soft fluffy fungus grew. It looked like the candyfloss that Calvan’s father used to buy him, when as a child he would go shopping with his parents. They were both starving now. He dabbed at some and licked it cautiously. It was the best thing that he’d ever tasted. Both boys ate until they were full, and drank from a crystal clear pool of water.

  “Maybe the Ancestors used this place for shelter,” Tom said. He had the feeling that fate connected him with these Ancestors of the first spaceship crash,

  They explored the chamber, and then Calvan noticed a recess in the nearby rock. On closer inspection it looked liked it had been deliberately made, and had small cracks all around the edges, as if the rocks had been affected by intense heat. “I’ve seen this before on a geology trip,” Tom said. “This was made with a laser. We use them a lot on Two Stars - for things like tunnel making and mining minerals from the ground.”

  Both boys gasped in amazement. There inside the recess was a small round container. I was perfectly rounded and smooth, its surface gleaming as they moved their torches around. It looked new, as if someone had recently placed it there, although everything here had a feeling of great age. Tom lifted the container out carefully with both hands, and placed it gently on the rocky ground. The lid slowly opened. Calvan jumped back in alarm saying, “Careful this could be a bomb.” Tom shouldn’t have laughed, but couldn’t help it. Maybe it was just relief.

  Both boys edged back and peered into the container. There seemed to be a plain piece of plastic rolled up inside. Tom picked it up, and they both exclaimed in surprise as he unrolled it. Suddenly the flat surface glowed and an image appeared. There was the mountain that they were heading for. Then the picture zoomed in, and they could make out a cave in the rock wall of the mountainside. Tom told Calvan, “I think this was left by the Ancestors, the people from the original crash.”

  “But what’s it for?” Calvan asked.

  “My guess is that it’s been left as a kind of pointer,” Tom explained, “to tell us we’re on the right track.”

  “But they didn’t know about us,” Calvan said.

  “Of course they didn’t,” Tom said patiently, “but they expected their own people to be coming back here.”

  He prompted Calvan now, “to rescue the others that they’d left behind. That’s the legend of the Sky People I told you about.”

  Calvan’s expression changed, as understanding dawned on him. “And also pick up their fire crystal,” he said, finishing Tom explanation.

  “Exactly,” Tom replied smiling.

  Tom and Calvan enjoyed their good fortune, and rested while they could, ate more and bathed in the pool. After a good sleep they gathered as much of the fungus as they could carry, and set out into a passage. Opposite the one they had entered. This time they knew where they were going, and much to their relief this passage was sloping gently upwards.

  “A good sign,” Calvan declared.

  Finally the boys reached a sharp bend in the tunnel, and found the passage was blocked by a rock fall. There was a chink of light between two rocks, easily visible in the gloom. They had reached the end of the tunnel!

  Quickly tossing some rocks back behind them they emerged, blinking into bright sunlight. “No more Jungle,” Tom said, “we’re on the edge of a desert.” It was true; they were standing on hot sand that extended ahead. There in the far distance stood the mountain - like a mirage.

  “Why doesn’t it look any closer than it did from the low tide mark, off the beach?” Calvan asked.

  “Because that’s the way it is with mountains,” Tom answered. “They start looking close-up, and you decide to walk towards them, but then a funny thing happens - they don’t seem to get any closer.”

  “Yes, I’ve read that somewhere in a book too,” Calvan said.

  They still had the three containers from the boat, and a good supply of water at this stage. There was no going back to the beach. The boys strode out into the desert. “Lets go, and walk to the mountain,” Tom said.

  “We may find an oasis on the way, or maybe a couple of them,” Calvan said, not really believing it himself.

  Six hours later: The two friends sat shivering under a full moon. “I’ve never been so hot, and so cold in one day,” Tom complained.

  “I would start a camp fire, but we’re a bit short of wood at the moment Calvan replied drily.”

  It was noon the next day now, and the sun beat down on them fiercely. There was a crooked trail of footprints left as the pair staggered on. Tom glanced back and said, “At least we’ll be able to find our way back to the passage if we need to.”

  Unless a strong wind blows up,” Calvan replied, noticing that the sand was shifting all the time.

  “Two more days of water left, so lets keep moving,” Tom said shaking their last full water container.

  A shadow crossed over them. Calvan looked up. “Birds of prey never do anything without reason,” he said. Tom followed his gaze with a sinking heart. Some huge buzzards were circling high above. A brief observation confirmed that the boys were their center of attention. Every now and then one would swoop down to inspect them, and then soar up again, as if to report to the rest.

  “They’re after fresh meat, and waiting for our water to run out,” Tom decided.

  “Well one thing I am not is fresh meat,” Calvan answered.

  “Lets move on,” they said together.

  That night they had more to worry about than cold and thirst. Under the cover of darkness they found themselves surrounded by wild dogs. They looked almost as hungry as themselves, and desperate for meat. “My guess is that these critters are not here to say hello – they want to eat us,” Calvan declared.

  “Thanks for the news,” Tom replied.

  Their leader was easy to spot, a mean looking thing, almost half as big again as the others. It was more like a wolf than a dog, and the only one that looked well fed. As he drew closer it was as if he was drawing the pack with him, and they moved into a ragged ring that slowly became tighter.

  The leader was very close now. Its cold eyes never left Calvan’s, and he stared back hypnotized with dread. It must have picked him as the easy option. Half sitting on its haunches, it edged towards him. Tom could hear its low growl, and see the saliva dripping from its huge jaws.

  The ring of dogs was drawing in, as suddenly with a snarl the leader made its move and lunged for Calvan’s leg. He shouted in pain and shock, as the beast sunk his teeth into flesh and began to drag him forwards.

  Tom shouted at the dog “Nothing is going to eat his friend.” Then he leaped up, pointing at the leader’s nose. It was as if a ball of lightning had left the end of his finger, and crossed the space to the animal's nose. It leaped back and yelped. Then it growled and crouched, ready to spring this time.

  Suddenly Tom changed shape and became a huge cat. He growled fearsomely, and ran at the dog. It whimpered and ran off, followed by the rest of the pack. Soon all of them had disappeared into the night, their tails between their legs, looking for easier prey. The image of the big cat faded and was replaced by Tom, in his usual shape.

  “Thanks, I thought that you were going to attack them,” Calvan said with relief.

  “That wouldn’t have been possible,” Tom said modestly. “It was a trick of the light.”

  He removed something from the small plastic bag, as Calvan pushed up the leg of his pants to expose the injury. The bite was deep into the muscle, oozing blood, and he was in pain now.

  “Let’s give you something for that,” Tom said as he removed the wrapping from a small pack from the same pocket as his locator.

  He broke the contents in two, and with loud protests from Calvan rubbed half of the substance into the wound. “Here take a small drink and swallow the rest of this stuff,” he said.

  “What is it?” Calvan asked.

  “Don’t worry about that, if you want to live just do it,” Tom replied. “I was saving that for my
self but your need is greater.”

  They intended to take alternate turns on watch, as the other slept, but the next thing Tom knew was when he woke with a start, and jumped up in alarm. It was if he had risen from a dark pit. The sun was well over the horizon, and had been shining directly on his face.

  He shook Calvan awake quickly, making him jump up with a terrified look, as if the dogs were coming back. He grew calmer, and groaned. How did he sleep with all that pain? Wait – there was none! He looked down at his leg, and the calf that was still exposed. There were traces of a wound, and many small scars that resembled tooth marks. The wound had healed, and looked about three weeks old.

  Next day saw them on the trail again, headed straight towards the distant mountain. “I can’t take much more of this,” Calvan complained, his calf muscle still aching, “lets stop for a break.” They dug themselves into the soft hot sand, and with shirts over their heads waited for the sun to set.

  Night fell at last, and they were very thirsty now. “If we stay here too long then we may as well not climb out of this sand,” Tom declared. The last thing that Calvan wanted to do now was walk, but knew there was no choice. Time was running out and unless a miracle happened they would never see another sunset.

  Calvan was obsessed by the thought of cold lemonade in a clear glass, and could imagine the bubbles rising in the clear liquid, as the dew started to form on the outside. He was about to imagine a huge long gulp, when Tom suddenly gave a shout of surprise. He had placed the palm of his hand over a lump of the half buried rock that had been pushing against his ribs, and causing him discomfort in the night. It seemed to be too smooth and cold – maybe even metallic. He sat up, turned around, and cleared away some sand with the side of his hand. There was a small portion of shiny metal exposed.

  “This is something part of something bigger, buried below” he told Calvan.

  Both of them scooped sand away frantically. They were in a strange detached space now, as if they were watching this happening to someone else. “Is this the miracle we’re supposed to find?” Calvan asked. It sounded a bit crazy, like the words of a desperate person.

  Finally they had uncovered what looked like the outline of a hatch. Tom pulled on a recessed handle, but nothing happened. They worked all night clearing the sand from the handle, and making some space around the hatch itself. Both boys knew that they were racing against time and soon the sun would be up.

  Calvan’s mouth felt like leather, and he had given up trying to swallow. Finally at sunrise a miracle happened as they both pulled on the handle, each with one hand. It was beginning to move. “I’ll count to three then we both pull,” Tom said.

  At a countdown of three they pulled backwards like never before. The hatch opened suddenly with a jerk. There was an immediate whirr of electric motors, and as they scrambled forwards to peer into the opening lights came on inside. They were looking into a cabin!

  “Come on let’s get in,” Tom said.

  “But we don’t know what’s in there,” Calvan replied.

  Could it be worse than this?” Tom asked, waving his hand at the rising sun.

  9 Shelter

  The boys scrambled into the cabin. Tom took stock of his surroundings and declared; “it’s a survival craft, and was probably left by the Ancestors.” Then they saw the drinking fountain. The glass container above it was slowly filling with liquid - a pump must have started. It still worked and the water seemed clear. Both boys drank their fill.

  “This craft may be old, but has all the comforts that you could ask for, and can travel by air, sea, or on land” Tom said. “It’s a Life craft, and doubles up as a survival shelter.”

  “Well it seems to be doing its job,” Calvan said gratefully.

  After a rest Tom spent some time checking the craft. He could find no faults, and even the air conditioning started up again. It was hard to believe that the desert was just a few feet above them, as they sat back on a couch munching survival rations and watching an instruction video, showing how to operate the craft.

  “This thing is like a five-star hotel,” Calvan said, still unable to believe their luck.

  “Lets rest here tomorrow,” Tom said. “The day after will be a full one, I’m taking us to the mountain.”

  “Can you fly this thing?” Calvan asked surprised.

  Tom replied, “I don’t intend to just yet, because I’m not sure how much energy it has left. We’ll run on hover, and if there is energy to spare, we can fly around the mountain and look for the cave.”

  So as the next day passed, as they rested ate and drank, and started to feel better. Tom found a movie about his home planet. This fascinated Calvan, - a city full of huge buildings, bathed in a soft light, and with strange craft moving between them.

  Calvan continued to stare. “Boy I’d like to go to that place someday,” he said.

  “We’ve a lot of work to do yet,” Tom said, “but for the first time I really think that we’ll make it. Lets get an early night, I plan to raise this thing to the surface at dawn.”

  The boys woke with a start. It was not yet dawn, and the air conditioning had failed. Fresh desert air was being drawn in, and the craft has cooled overnight, so that on its smooth inner surfaces there was a layer of condensation. “That wasn’t supposed to happen,” Tom said. “Let’s get started before anything else goes wrong!” He stood over the control console and keyed something in. Suddenly the stillness was broken. The ground shook, and a cloud of dust rose. It was as if a giant was rising from the grave. With a loud creaking sound, the rescue craft emerged, tossing stones and small boulders everywhere.

  Tom was at the controls, addressing the computer in a strange language. To the amazement of Calvan the computer answered back, as if confirming instructions.

  “That’s it,” Tom said finally. “The air con is back up, and I’ve voiced-in our trip. We’re headed directly for the mountain, and the ship will stop if there are any obstructions that need manual override. Unless we run out of fuel, our trip is booked, so there’s nothing left to do except relax and enjoy the ride.”

  The ground was flat, and even more arid now as they headed towards the mountain. Even the tumbleweed had disappeared a long way back. The sky was clear, with not a cloud in sight and after a long night it was cold, with no hint of the scorching day ahead.

  Very slowly the view of the mountain seemed to grow larger, and began to fill their view through the cockpit window. By early afternoon they had lost sight of it to a shimmering heat- haze. Inside the craft it was cool and comfortable. Calvan fell asleep and Tom played a video game.

  The hours rolled by, until at sunset Tom announced: “We’re nearly half way there.”

  He shouldn’t have said anything. Suddenly the craft came to a halt and settled in the sand. Stranger still, metallic shutters closed over the windows. A monitor screen lit up, and showed the view outside. As the computer scanned the scene, a loud chime sounded, and Tom remarked, “I have a bad feeling about this, it only happens for a reason.” They both stared at the monitors, scared at what they may see.

  With horror, they realized that strange squid-like creatures were hemming in the ship. They had long limbs, studded with suckers that they used to cling to the outside hull. “Strange to see these in the middle of a desert,” Calvan said.

  One monitor display went dark. “I’ve seen these things before,” Tom said. “They’re the guardians, and right now they aren’t being helpful. They must be just be following instructions, and doing their job– someone doesn’t want us to reach the mountain.”

  “That’s a good sign then that we’re on the right track I guess,” Calvan said.

  “Watch this” Tom said, as he pulled down a flap on the control consul and hit a red button with the flat of his hand. The monitor screen flashed bright again. Outside the hull shimmered in a blue haze charged with energy, and the creatures backed off. Some unlucky ones were flung off. They were free!

  The way ahead was clear
! Tom hadn’t left the consul, and with another swift movement, shoved the throttle to full speed. Calvan was thrown back in his seat, by the force of acceleration. The craft broke the sound barrier, leaving a sonic boom behind it.

  Tom laughed as he slowed the craft. “We’ve left that bunch far behind. I feel a bit guilty, it’s actually a crime to harm these creatures, but they’ll be fine. I just shook them up a bit.” He carefully pointed the ship back on course, and set a comfortable cruising speed.

  “I thought that you said we were to take it easy, this being an old craft,” Calvan complained. He could swear that the thing was beginning to creak now.

  Tom didn’t answer; knowing the reason for his haste must have been obvious.

  He’d once seen these creatures when his father had taken him for a visit to the Palace of the Elders, on his own planet. They guarded the palace, just by being there.

  They originally came from a cold and misty swamp-world that swung on a wildly elliptical orbit. When it was a long way from it’s own star the days were short and cold, and they would hibernate. They could do this in any weather though, and could come back to life quickly.

  “I have no idea at all what they are doing here,” Tom said, it all seems a bit crazy. Maybe the people who left this life craft also placed them here as guards.

  “But why?” Calvan asked.

  “Probably to prevent people coming too close to the store of fire crystal. It’s dangerous stuff in the wrong hands.”

  When Tom tried to run the craft on autopilot again he found problems. “I think after that we may be running low on energy, because the computer has locked us in conserve mode. I’ll have to pilot manually for the rest of the way.”

  All that night they headed towards the mountain. Calvan dozed off a few times, and woke to see Tom’s face lit by the green glow of the instruments. He was steering the craft. Dawn came and passed, still Tom did not move. At last towards mid afternoon they approached the mountain. Up this close, they saw that it was huge.